The all-new, sixth-generation Ford Mustang will be introduced to the world on Thursday, but photos of the real car are already online, making their way to you by way of Autoweek‘s print magazine, a cell-phone camera, and the forums at SVTPerformance.com and Mustang6G.com. Just as our renderings and exposé from last month showed, the new Mustang is rakish and modern, leaving behind most of the 1960s retro kitsch from the outgoing S197 generation (especially as it looked from 2005 to 2009). What a relief Ford didn’t follow its homage to the first-generation Mustang with one to the turd that was the Mustang II.

This rear three-quarter shot appeared on the forums over at mustang6g.com.

Partly legible text of the magazine article confirms what we’ve reported thus far: that a turbocharged 2.3-liter four-cylinder engine joins the Mustang lineup, that the 5.0 is still taking names and kicking ass, and that despite the introduction of an independent rear suspension, engineers have cut hundreds of pounds from the curb weight. There’s a lot of emphasis from Ford on this Mustang being a “global” car, and while it’s true that the Mustang has a cult following outside of North America—in the U.K. and Germany especially—at least nine out of 10 sales will still be on this continent. Not that the current Mustang is any slouch when it comes to dynamics, but the insistence on giving the new car appeal in Europe probably means further sharpening of the steering and handling.

This official shot has been making the rounds online, and was sent to us by mustang6g.com.